Pubdate: Fri, 23 Jan 2004 Source: Guardian, The (UK) Copyright: 2004 Guardian Newspapers Limited Contact: http://www.guardian.co.uk/guardian/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/175 Author: Jeffrey Morgan CANNABIS: A BURNING ISSUE It has been reported (mainly in the tabloids) that 80% of new psychiatric cases have a history of cannabis use. But anxiety is an early warning sign of most major mental illnesses. So, does a person develop a mental illness because they smoke cannabis, or do they smoke cannabis in an effort to calm the anxiety which precedes full-blown symptoms? Cannabis might have deleterious effects. But it is a matter of fact that a recreational drug called alcohol killed 20,000 people and wrecked countless thousands of other lives in the UK last year alone. Jeffrey Morgan Stratford-upon-Avon, Warks - --- MAP posted-by: Larry Seguin